Week 3 - Low Carb Bootcamp - Where We Have a Decision to Make!

[BIWI]

Morning all.

Here's the link to the Spreadsheet of Fabulousness

So we've finished Bootcamp! Well done all or at least to all those who are still with us

Now you have a decision to make. You can move on to Bootcamp Light, if you wish, which is more relaxed (to a degree). The rules are on the tabs at the bottom of the spreadsheet - sorry, I don't have time to copy/paste this morning as I have to get off to work about 10 minutes ago.

But essentially it means that you can introduce nuts and berries - in moderation. You no longer have to have three meals a day. If you're not hungry, then it's fine to skip a meal - as long as you don't then dive into a pile of carbs when you get hungry! And you can have alcohol - again, in moderation.

If you're happy with the stricter Bootcamp then by all means stay on that, but please, please, please make sure that your carbs are coming from vegetables and salad. It's important that you get nutrition from these.

Or you can, if you like, do Bootcamp at the week and Bootcamp Light at the weekend.

However

There is also something else you need to prepare for, and that is the dreaded weeks 3 and 4 slowdown!

It's something that lots of people experience. The weight loss suddenly stops, for no apparent reason. If this happens, don't worry and don't panic that you're doing anything wrong (assuming that you're not, of course ), just keep on keeping on, and it will get going again - albeit at a slower rate.

From here on, you should be expecting to see a loss of 1-2lbs a week.

Good luck everyone!

Really easy sass. Mr P had done the red cabbage the other day (just braised with some stock and fennel seeds).

Fried 3 slices of bacon, then added sliced leeks to the pan and a knob of butter, added red cabbage to that to warm up. Chopped up the bacon. Whack into a bowl with avocado and cheese. Eat in 3 seconds flat!

Hi sayra, still doing it but not weighing, thanks

Yum lurking I'm going to try that. Thank you.

That sounds lovely, lurking!

My motivation for LCing:
I had my third (and last) daughter just over 6 months ago, but I'm still in maternity jeans because I don't want to buy clothes this size!
I need to work towards feeling like an actual woman, rather than 'pusher of buggy' and 'wiper of noses'
I want to enter the next phase of my life with a healthy BMI and strong body that works for me.
I'd like to feel remotely sexy again...

But, I'm getting closer every day, the next stone is tantalisingly close...
Koko.

(It feels quite motivating to write it down, thanks!)

Also, while I'm feeling rather confessional, I need to admit to changing my weights on the spreadsheet... I started a week early, but hadn't counted that first week's loss. I STS last week, so I've changed all my weights to include my early start. It's not competitive, but simply to keep myself motivated and chart how much I've really lost. Hope that's ok x

Sorry for being AWOL lately, my toddler has discovered the joy of iPhone apps so I can't get on MN apart from when he's asleep.

MrsSteveJones as a long-term low carber I find that my weight varies drastically from day to day. Realistically even weekly weigh IBS are too often for this type of WoE, if you want to see consistent weight loss then you need to weigh monthly. My children have all been under the care of dietitians because of concerns about their weight and they won't weigh more often than three-monthly. Because you don't have any stored liver glycogen when following this WoE then any extra carbs can result in a huge weight change for a few days. When your fat cells release fat then they replace the fat with an equivalent weight of water which is more dense than the fat (remember fat floats on water) so it takes up less space making it possible to lose fat without losing water. Eventually your body will release the water from a lot of fat cells at the same time resulting in a whoosh of weight loss. If you are following the rules then you will be losing fat consistently (it's mostly turned to carbon dioxide and breathed out would you believe!) but your weight loss should and will be erratic. If you're doing everything right then you will lose 1-2 lb per week on average but the scales will not drop by 1-2 lb per week and can rise in response to e.g. not drinking enough water, TOTM, not sleeping well, stress, exercise and many other factors. Fat loss is strictly rate limited, it just isn't possible to lose more than 2lb per week of fat. If you lose any more than this then it is likely to be glycogen or muscle mass that you are losing or a sudden loss of retained water from your fat cells.

*weekly weigh-ins

I love that explanation Stunt, makes so much sense. I think I might C&P it for when the going gets tough.

Ehric...

So by reducing carbs we are reducing insulin release meaning the cells don't store sugar as fat, right?
It isn't quite as simple as all that, for a very good explanation read Robert Lustig's Fat Chance which isn't a book about low carb, just against sugar and specifically fructose. A reasonable explanation is that elevated insulin levels prevent your fat cells from releasing fat so you cannot access your fat stores while insulin levels are high. By eating a low carb diet we keep our insulin levels low which allows fat to flow freely in and out of our fat cells. The people that benefit most from low carbing are often people that have a degree of insulin-resistance therefore the pancreas is pumping out even more insulin whenever we consume glucose making our fat stores inaccessible.

And when we eat fat, because we have very little sugar in our blood the fat is used as the primary energy source, is that right?
We call Bootcamp a low carb diet Way of Eating but it is actually low carb-high fat. We replace the carbs we were eating with fat since we still need to eat and our calories have to come from somewhere. We can't replace the carbs with protein for two reasons: first a high protein diet puts strain on the kidneys, second with a high protein diet the liver converts the excess protein to glucose which then causes insulin levels to rise again causing the same problem as the carbs.

Why do we then start burning body fat as fuel? Is it what happens when the dietary fat has been used up What happens to the protein we eat?

1. The carbs we eat are used to fuel cells that are dependent on glucose such as the retina and red blood cells.
2. Some of the protein we eat is converted to glucose to make up any shortfall in the amount of glucose our bodies require. (We have an absolute requirement for glucose which is taken first from dietary glucose, second from dietary protein, and as a last resort in starvation by breaking down our own muscles for protein to convert to glucose). The rest of the protein we eat is used for repair or building of muscle (which is why you need extra protein if you're trying to build muscle).
3. The fat we eat is digested and passes into our blood supply. Our bodies can't tell the difference between the fat released from our fat cells and fat coming from our diet. Once we are fat-adapted our muscles use the fat directly. The fat is also converted into ketone bodies by the liver for the brain to use for energy since it can't use fat directly.

If we ate too much would we never lose body fat because we would always have a surfeit of dietary fat to use as fuel?
Yes. It is perfectly possible to not lose weight and even to gain weight on this WoE if your calorie intake is higher than your calorie expenditure. There is no magic to Bootcamp, it works by reducing your calorie intake. Our fat cells produce leptin which signals the brain that we have ample reserves. But guess what interferes with leptin signalling? That old villain insulin! So we can have stones of body fat but our brains think we are starving and need to eat more and store fat because the leptin signal can't get through to the brain. By lowering insulin we allow the leptin to get through and this decreases our appetite. One of the key effects of Bootcamp is that it reduces snacking and a lot of people even start skipping breakfast because they aren't hungry. That's the leptin signal getting through and the brain responding by reducing the amount we eat.

So that's a slightly simplified overview of the science behind it all. Any more questions?

Thanks stuntnun, I find it helps to understand the science behind it, so thanks for the explanations.

I managed to resist the biscuits last night and when i woke up this morning after going to bed grumpy as i couldnt eat them, i was very pleased with myself. I did eat 4 spoons of peanut butter - sigh but it was the best out of a bad lot. I dont think i will weigh any more - just stick to the trousers of truth or the dress in my case.

B- BPC
S - 2 marmite cheese - amazing as i had been missing my marmite and 2 snack size pepperoni
L- Green smoothie
D- will be green salad with oily dressing and mayo, burger with cheese

To be honest Chester I don't think it matters about the sciencey stuff, we all get disheartened and sometimes a bit desperate when the scales don't move. Taking measurements is a great idea as often an inch drops off the waist or hips without any change showing on the scale. I wasn't massively overweight when I started Bootcamp so I was quite shocked to lose half an inch off my wrists. I didn't even know I had chubby wrists!

I am glad i did take my waist measurement so i knew i had slimmed down. I had my watch reduced when i last lost a lot of weight and now cant get it on, my wrists feel really boney but obviously arent! I have also gone up nearly a shoe size i used to be a 5-5.5 and now i am more often than not a size 6 and i have to buy wide fit!!!

Afternoon bCampers

My motivation to lose weight is.

1.My knees are struggling.

1. I've been on the brink of diabetes for almost 20 years.
2. My ds is an adult now and I need to be able to live my own life.
3. I hate always being the one wanting to stay in or making excuses not to do anything.

Today I had...
B. Boiled eggs and butter.
LateL. Chicken salad with chicken bites from Iceland (the shop not the country)
D. Oxtail stew. Home made cos I'm cleaning the freezer out

Sorry another quick question... is anyone else still having very dry skin?? My face is better, less red and dry. I am usually much more greasy. My hands are awful, the skin across my knuckles feels scaley and no amount of moisturiser is helping. I am obvs having loads of oils, butter, avocado and water etc

Also i have a wicked bruise on my leg, i must have really smacked myself to get such a whopper but i have no recollection. I also have about 6 other less impressive brusies - could i be missing something from my diet? I am eating loads of veg esp green and mostly take a vit pill a day. Is anyone else finding this?

MrsSJ, my hands are terrible! I do tend to get dry skin at this time of year, but I'm the same in that moisturiser just isn't making a difference. I'm hoping to see an improvement as we move towards spring, but it definitely seems to have got worse since I started bootcamp.

bold:Mrsstevejones dry skin I use coconut oil. when you spoon out a bit for the cooking pinch what's left off the spoon and rub in.
works great. absorbs complete before the eggs are done.
doc article here

Sass that sounds lovely! I have a whole broccoli and half a Camembert in the fridge so that is tea tonight sorted! Thank you very much xxxx
Chipping Please don't think me a stalker but I have just read your initial thread after your blood glucose at the chemist made you go agh, and I seem to remember Total Gk yog was ok but after the Lidl (Aldi?) alternative, your BG spiked - does that sound possible? I am such a geek. It was amazing reading btw, made me more determined than ever. I had a fasting blood glucose thing done at docs a couple of months back as was mainlining sugar really (depressed) and was genuinely worried. Thankfully it was on the low side of normal (I have only my genes to thank, ridiculously healthy family) but it was a wake-up call.
Off to make my soup! (Slurrrrrrp)

The problem with me, Stunt is that if I measure my waist and it’s gone up, I think it’s because I am such a failure and a waste of space, blah, blah, blah, and if it’s gone down I automatically assume I have the tape in the wrong place.

I know measuring is great for lots of people but for me, getting to grips with the science really helps when the scales don’t shift. Your explanation has been really helpful to me . I have read Briffa, albeit this time last year, but have found a lot of the other recommended books too hard to get into so to have someone put it in simple terms is great.

Just managed to catch up with the thread!

So sorry to hear your news Mrs K.

Encouraging to read all your reasons for doing bootcamp. My motivation for bootcamp is around finishing the job I started some five years ago. I've proved I can maintain quite well on this woe but I want to maintain at a lower level!

I would really like to be able to build a wardrobe again; I used to have a lovely collection of clothes in size 26 which are all long gone. All the clothes I have bought since (now size 16) are "for now" and I don't buy expensive things as I want to be smaller. I think another 1.5 stone would do it and I'm trying to think of this when the cravings bite.

OK, a good couple of days so far...

Monday
B: 2 cold sausages
L: Halloumi and roasted veg salad (with mushrooms, green pepper and shallot)
S: Pepperami mini
D: Cauliflower cheese and sauteed spinach and greens with butter

Tuesday
B: 2 cold sausages
L: Halloumi and roasted veg salad (with mushrooms, green pepper and shallot)
S: Pepperami mini
D: 2 roasted chicken thighs (skin on) with veg... might try some mashed swede and celeriac and maybe some fried leeks. Can't wait!

Think I'll have some Lidl yoghurt with rose essence for pudding!

Can i recommend that it is not advisable to cough water through your nose. Not only does it hurt but if you do it right you will need a change of clothes

blueberry you're welcome.

I have a question too. Well, a statement 1st and then a question.

When I write out my food list on here, I usually write my snack as Greek yogurt or as of yesterday, dark chocolate. But I don't usually have it as a stand alone snack as such. More often than not I have it straight after my dinner.

So to the question eventually

Is this better to do this then? Will it result in less insulin as it is in effect all combined to one meal time, rather than being spaced out throughout the day?

Hope that made sense!

I have yoghurt straight after dinner too Sass I need to finish on a sweeter note

Fatstacks! Stop doing that right away! Remember we're trying to break the hold that sweet things have over us!

sass yes, I think it's better to eat it all at the same time. But see ^^ reply to Fastbacks!!!